General Motors plans to sit out the Super Bowl next year, reports Brian Steinberg in Advertising Age. The decision comes after the automaker said it will stop advertising on Facebook, the story notes.

The company gave a simple reason for skipping the Super Bowl: It’s too expensive.

"We understand the reach the Super Bowl provides, but with the significant increase in price, we simply can’t justify the expense," said GM’s global chief marketing officer, Joel Ewanick, in a statement.

The automaker most likely wants to spur a discussion about the price and effectiveness of certain media outlets, the story notes.

"The announcements also come just as the annual upfront marketplace — where ad buyers strike deals for commercial time in the coming TV season — is getting under way, and could be meant to signal an aggressive pose heading into negotiations," Steinberg writes.

"Like Facebook on the eve of its IPO, the Super Bowl is a splashy target for GM. The cost of advertising in the gridiron classic has soared in recent years as marketers place more value on live sports and broad, communal events that draw the kinds of big audiences that are becoming harder and harder to assemble," the story points out.

NBC drew an average of $3.5 million for a 30-second spot in this year’s Super Bowl. CBS, which will air the 2013 game, has been talking about $4 million a spot.